Republican gubernatorial candidate Mary Fallin praised Boeing officials for their recent decision to move 550 California engineering jobs to Oklahoma, but she also cautioned that without further reforms to the state’s workers’ compensation and tort systems, future jobs could go elsewhere.
“The good news is we won this round, but the less good news is that we are still competing with other states for future jobs.”
Fallin said the Boeing move mirrors decisions by other employers to flee California’s high taxes and excessive regulation. Oklahoma, she said, is more attractive because of reforms we have enacted in workers’ comp and our lawsuit system, but those reforms must continue if we are to successfully compete for future jobs.
“As governor, my first priority will be to make Oklahoma the most attractive state in the nation to employers seeking a haven from high taxes and the heavy hand of government,” Fallin said.
Fallin said other states like New York and Maryland, where liberal governors and state legislatures have reacted to the recession by raising taxes, are also losing population and jobs.
“That’s an opportunity for Oklahoma, but only if we have a governor and a legislature working together to enact those reforms that make us more attractive,” she said. “I will be that governor.”
